Since internet time feels like dog years at times, it's wild to think about how some memes start spreading. While most of our timelines seem to have been inundated with memes showing the above picture with a particularly petty phrase or sentiment attached to it, its origin story actually dates back to the summer of 2016. Here's the brief tale of how Roll Safe became the latest meme everyone is hopping on.
On June 1, 2016, BBC Three posted a clip online about a guy named Reece Simpson, a.k.a. Roll Safe (played by actor Kayode Ewumi), as a part of their Hood Documentary web series. It's typical mockumentary style following an absent-minded figure who's bigger in his own mind than he is in the actual world. In the clip, he makes a crude reference to his girl's oral skills, and does the now-infamous point to his head.
The clip didn't become a meme right away, though. According to Know Your Meme, @FootyHumor was the first to flip the image into a tweet.
A dickhead thing to do, but the tweet took off, although it wasn't until late January where the meme showed up again with an image that you no doubt have seen on your Twitter and Instagram timelines.
Since that tweet hit, it's been a wrap, even hitting the Reddit circuit. And like that, Roll Safe went from a cheeky bastard in a BBC Three comedy web series into a certified meme, with scores of individuals throwing out their pettiest innermost thoughts for the world to see.
Some folks are already remixing it as well.
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Yeah, we might be here for a while... or at least until the next hilarious meme finds its way onto our timelines.
